PROCEEDINGS. §19 
through its chairman, Mr. William Harkness, the following re¬ 
port, which was adopted and the committee discharged: 
“ The committee appointed to take suitable action respecting 
u the death of our late member, Mr. E. B. Elliott, beg leave 
“ to report that on account of the trite and perfunctory character 
“ of the resolutions usually passed on such occasions they are 
“ of opinion that it would be better to omit them entirely, 
“ and to substitute in their stead a suitable biographical notice 
“ of Mr. Elliott, to be published in the Bulletin of the Society. 
“ The committee are further of the opinion that in the future 
“ such biographical notices should be published in the case of 
“ all deceased members of the Society, and for that reason the 
“ committee offer the following resolution : 
“ Resolved , That in the future suitable biographical notices of 
“ all deceased members of this Society shall be published in our 
“ Bulletin, and it shall be the duty of the President in each 
“ case to appoint a member of the Society to prepare such 
“ notice. 
‘‘(Signed) Wm. Harkness. 
“(Signed) R. S. Woodward. 
“ October 27, 1888.” 
Mr. J. W. Powell then read a paper entitled The Laws of 
Corrasion. [Abstract published in Science , vol. 12, p. 229.] 
Remarks on this communication were made by Messrs. Ward, 
Kenaston, and Greely. 
[Abstract.] 
Mr. Ward said that while making the descent of the Missouri river in 
the summer of 1883, from Fort Benton to Bismarck, he had been inter¬ 
ested in studying the phenomena of lateral corrasion, and had observed 
that this was the only influence at work at that season of the year in 
causing the well-known turbidity of the water of that river. The river 
consists of a succession of curves or “ bends,” in which, on one side or the 
other, it is perpetually wearing away the flood plain. The lateral corra¬ 
sion takes place only on one side at a time, namely, on the side of maxi¬ 
mum curvature. On the other side deposition is going on and bars are 
formed. The current is most rapid on the corrading side and regularly 
diminishes in velocity from one bank to the other. This fact, Mr. Ward 
said, did not seem in harmony with the law laid down by Major Powell, 
